The installation of fiber-optic cable has become quite common in both residential districts and rural areas. The typical installation utilizes a trencher apparatus to form a trench in excess of four feet deep and approximately six inches in width, while fiber optic cable is dispensed behind the trencher at the bottom of the trench.
The main problem with conventional installations of cable in the bottom of this narrow, deep trench is the replacement of soil in the trench. Typically, the soil piled to the sides of the trench will be pushed into the trench with a backhoe or the like. If this backfilled earth is not compacted sufficiently, a mound of soil will remain over the trench or the soil will later settle and form a depression along the line of the underground installation. Such a depression causes water to stand along the trench and can thereby increase the possibility of damage to the cable at the bottom of the trench as well as vehicles travelling along the trench. Further, people and animals may be injured if they come into contact with the depression.
One method for compacting the soil within the trench utilizes a compacting roller centrally supported on the bucket or scoop of a loader machine. In use, the machine straddles the trench and the roller is moved fore and aft within the trench to compact the soil. The roller at the front end of the loader, and the manipulation of the loader weight on the roller, makes it difficult to steer the machine and follow the trench line and requires large amounts of time to conduct the fore and aft movement of the roller which, in turn, results in poor compaction of the trench.